Trapped
by DistantSanity
Summary: Why did the Hero of Time not return to save Hyrule a second time, as described in Wind Waker's prologue? Because time itself was preventing him. This reimagining of the "Adult Link" chronology from Ocarina of Time will chronicle the hero's feelings as he tries to come to grips with what is going on. Rated T for violence, occasional coarse language, and various dark/horror elements.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note:** Everyone who has ever visited online Zelda forums knows that the series' timeline has long been a subject of contentious debate among fans. Over the years, I've developed my own theory of how the games that reference the Hero of Time (Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Wind Waker) fit together. This fanfic will take that theory as a starting point and explore a bit to see what can be done with the idea. I'm eager to find out what you all think!

I recommend this story primarily to people who have played all three of the games mentioned above. If you haven't, then there will be some elements that don't make sense….

* * *

_Now, go home, Link. Regain your lost time!  
__Home... where you are supposed to be...  
the way you are supposed to be...  
_~Princess Zelda (OoT)

_**Prologue**_

_[Many, many years in the future…]_

_Flames engulfed the fields of Hyrule. The once-vibrant green grass was scorched and lifeless; trees weakened and fell under the onslaught, fueling the raging fires, whose unearthly glow was reflected in the sky itself. Half covered by clouds, the heavens gleamed a menacing dark red that served to swallow rather than spread the light of the sun. The air was awash with the twin stenches of blood and destruction as untold hordes picked their way across the fire-drenched land—Moblins and Bokoblins and other demonic creatures. Their leader was a gargantuan, bipedal, horned beast who stood away from the area of fighting and watched them from afar, and though a thick forest surrounded him, he was so large that his pig-like head and dark green upper body were clearly visible above the trees; most likely, he could be seen from any corner of this world that went by the name "Hyrule." His hide was covered in scars and stained with old blood, but his malevolent eyes were full of life. In his hands he held twin gold-colored blades—like immense knives—which he waved about every so often, pointing them this way and that as he gave orders to his troops._

_At the moment, the great beast had his eyes on a distant village, a small Hylian settlement on the outskirts of Hyrule Castle Town. The villagers had dug a trench around their cluster of homes and built a medium-high stone wall behind it as an attempt to keep the invaders out; their soldiers battled outside this perimeter and exerted every possible effort to defeat or at least repel the demonic army. Thus far, their tactics were working… to a point. The wall had crumbled in a handful of isolated spots, most of which also contained a monster's corpse with arrows sticking out of its back—picked off by the soldiers outside the village, or the hidden archers inside, before it got any farther. The village's civilian population was terrified at the sight of these areas where the wall had collapsed, but no one dared go out to make repairs. The doors into the villagers' houses were all shut and locked firmly. All… except one._

_Slowly, the back door of one home opened, and a little boy of about six years stepped outside. Immediately, the omnipresent smell of burnt matter made him cough, but he was not to be deterred from his objective. He closed the door behind him and cautiously made his way toward the outer perimeter, concealing himself behind buildings whenever possible. Here and there, the grass was encrusted with dark monster blood, and of course the sight of the dead monsters around the perimeter made his stomach sink, but he forced himself to press on. At least there were no dead Hylians. Not here, at any rate; the boy was under no illusions that this war had been kind to the Hylians. Any dead Hylians would be outside the wall._

_For several long minutes he crept along the wall's interior, until at last he found what he sought: a battered, rolled-up scroll that lay amid a few fallen bricks—for, by some coincidence, this was one of the areas of the wall that had experienced a partial breach. A foot or so away was a severed Moblin hand, claws and all, that lay almost on its side, like some Wallmaster that had descended from above at breakneck speed, missed its mark, and passed out upon landing. The hand's palm faced in the scroll's direction—almost as if the Moblin had been reaching for it at the moment of death._

_A chill swept through the boy, and he shivered with a sudden feeling of dread as he bent over to pick the scroll up. His parents had given him the document only a few days ago: it was to provide him with "aspirations," whatever those were. He had been looking at it yesterday, and sitting in this spot, when the order had been given for all civilians to take shelter indoors. In his haste to return home, he had dropped the scroll on the ground; but now he had found it again._

_Still standing near the perimeter wall, listening to the faint sounds of battle that were audible from the other side, he unrolled the long piece of parchment. Based on what his parents had told him, it seemed this scroll told the story of some ancient legend. There was a great deal of narrow, spidery Hylian script, which he still could not read with any skill; his best clue as to what this story was about would come from the many pictures that accompanied the written text. Pictures…._

_Yes. _There.

_One panel displayed the image he had been seeking, that had lingered in his mind since yesterday. Like the other pictures, it was really just a crude drawing, and it showed what looked to be a battlefield surrounded by stylized flames. One side of this battlefield was occupied by a giant monster with a pig's head…._

_He backtracked a few steps so he could look over the wall at the huge monstrosity that was visible on the distant horizon, waving one of its immense blades. The monster in the picture was holding similar blades. In fact, though the drawing was just an outline with no color drawn inside the lines, it looked a lot like the… thing… that was out there…._

"_By the goddesses! There you are!" exclaimed a familiar female voice. The boy turned around to see his mother approaching him rapidly. She was a tall, proud woman with dark blonde hair, whose very demeanor and way of carrying herself commanded respect. Like all Hylians of her age, she was a trained fighter; even now, she was equipped with a bow and a long hunting knife. However, at this moment, fighting would be a last resort for her, as her first responsibility was to ensure the safety of her son._

"_I told you to stay inside!" she fumed. "What do you have to say for yourself?!"_

"_I was looking for this," the boy said simply, indicating the scroll. "The monster here…"_

_Now that she could see that her son was unharmed, the woman's anger gradually evaporated, and she stepped closer to look at the part of the scroll that held the boy's attention. "I can guess what you're thinking," she said with a sigh. "Yes. The monster out there now, who's trying to destroy us—that's him, the ancient enemy. That's Ganon…."_

_The boy unfurled the scroll a bit more, so that the other half of the stylized battlefield could be seen in its entirety. "But then who's that?" he asked, pointing at a short, Hylian-like figure. The green of the figure's clothing and the yellow of a strange triangle that hovered over the figure's head were the only two spots of color in the entire picture._

_His mother smiled slightly. "That's the Hero of Time," she told him. "The most courageous Hylian who has ever lived. It was because of this bravery that the gods entrusted him with a part of the sacred Triforce"—she pointed at the yellow triangle—"and it's also why he wears the green of Farore."_

_The boy studied the green figure intently. It did look brave; in fact, it held a sword raised high as if to challenge the huge pig-like creature._

"_It was the Hero of Time who saved everyone, many years ago. He was kind and always willing to help people in need. It is said that heroic deeds followed him wherever he went, leaving everyone who crossed his path filled with happiness. And time was as nothing to him—he could travel forward and backward as he chose." The woman shook her head in awe. "Truly… truly an extraordinary person."_

_For a long moment, the boy continued to stare at the drawing; then, suddenly, he looked up and met his mother's gaze. "But if he's a hero, then… then why won't he—"_

_Loud footsteps and a shout interrupted him. Recognizing the voice, he turned around immediately to witness the arrival of a very tall, brown-haired man clad in the silver armor of a Hylian knight. His father._

"_Father, Mother just told me about—"_

"_Not now, son," said the brown-haired man. He was panting heavily from running, and now he sheathed his sword with one hand while wiping sweat from his forehead with the other. Both his sword and his armor were spattered with Moblin blood. "You two shouldn't be out here; it's not safe."_

"_What news is there from the front?" his wife asked._

"_Quite a bit—and nothing good. New Kakariko has fallen, and the few survivors have fled to the nearby mountains. All indications are that we're next; our long-range scouts are reporting that the enemy's main force is advancing in our direction. They're coming in huge numbers—far beyond what we've seen so far. And you know that we and a couple of other villages are the last line of defense. If we fall, then the enemy will essentially have Castle Town for the taking."_

"_Not good at all," said the blonde woman. "What of the Sages? Can we expect any help from them?"_

"_They're praying in the Temples. No word yet if their prayers will have any effect." He broke off abruptly, scanning the sky. "And it looks like a storm is coming. Not ideal weather for fighting a war."_

_It was true: dark storm clouds had started to gather in the unnaturally red sky. The biggest, thickest storm clouds that anyone had ever seen._

"_But right now," he went on, putting one hand on his wife's back and the other on his son's back as if to push them toward the village's interior, "you need to go back insi—"_

_Just at that moment, there was a _whoosh_ overhead as a hail of arrows rained down. Flaming arrows. They buried themselves in each of the village's buildings—every last one of which was made from wood. Already, people were running outside, coughing in the smoke as the fires took root and spread._

"_Change of plans," the man said quickly. "Flee to the mountains with the other refugees; there's been little to no enemy activity there thus far. I will stay here and help hold off the enemy forces. When they're gone, I'll come and find you."_

_The boy had returned to staring at his scroll by this point, but if he had been looking at his parents, he would have seen the heartbroken expression that suddenly appeared on his mother's face. "We can't just leave—" she began._

"_You can, and you will! Now, go! As I said, I will join you later." And without another word, the tall knight drew his sword and ran back through the gap in the wall in the direction of the battle zone._

_Sighing, fighting back a sense of irrepressible sadness, the blonde woman reached down to take the boy's hand in her own. "Come on, sweetie, we need to get ourselves to safety so your father can focus on the battle…."_

_The boy's head jerked up in alarm. "We're leaving? But… but the Hero of Time…!"_

"_He will come," she soothed. "Now, we need to go. You want to be able to see him when he arrives, don't you?"_

_The boy obediently followed his mother through the ruins of the destroyed village, but when they reached the trail that led to the mountains, he yanked his hand free of hers so that he could open the scroll once more. As he walked the hard-packed trail at his mother's heels, the ink of the pictures and text began to smudge from his tears, mingled with the first drops of rain that had started to fall. Staring down at the image of the Hero of Time battling Ganon, he tried to put a stop to his crying while he murmured his mother's words over and over._

"_He will come… he will come…."_


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

_["Present Day"]_

It was said much later that things started to change on the day that column of blue light appeared in the sky. In the typical fashion of legends, finding someone who had actually seen it proved difficult or impossible: it seemed that everyone had heard the story from a passerby who had a friend or family member who had been a witness to the event—which witness, however, could never quite be tracked down. But, despite this, the peoples of Hyrule knew. They knew that the light had appeared, and they knew that it signaled the return of hope to their shattered world.

This light was positioned directly over the building known as the Temple of Time. Each bluish-white particle seemed to radiate upward from the temple's roof to pierce the cloudy sky above, but in reality this represented only that amount of light let out by the windows near the roof: the glow that filled the temple's interior was immensely bright. Its point of origin was the large, six-sided stone platform that rested in the middle of a circular chamber at the back of the temple. And, a few minutes after the light dissipated, it was from that circular chamber that a figure emerged.

The figure was a golden-haired young man, whose still somewhat boyish appearance pointed him out as no more than twenty years old, and perhaps a bit less. He wore a short-sleeved tunic of forest green with a tight-fitting white garment underneath that concealed his arms and legs. Everything about him revealed him to be a seasoned warrior: from his thin, toned body to the brown leather boots on his feet to the blue-and-silver shield on his back that proudly displayed Hyrule's Triforce emblem. It was even in his eyes. Blue as the waters of Lake Hylia, they communicated a determination tinged with emptiness. The emptiness of a boy who had seen too much too soon.

Slowly, the young man passed through the wide doorway that led to the temple's main room with its checkered black-and-white floor tiles. As he made his way down a couple of stone steps, he caught sight of a black slab off to his right. The slab's smooth, shiny surface was interrupted by three evenly-spaced hollows, which held the three Spiritual Stones. The Kokiri's Emerald, the Goron's Ruby, and the Zora's Sapphire. The stones rotated serenely in place, and though it was quite dark in the temple, light still reflected off the precious gems' every corner, enhancing their beauty. _He_ had put the stones there—where they now rested for all to see. It had been _his_ efforts to collect them, _his_ standing before them and playing the Song of Time on his ocarina, that had opened the door beyond.

That thought was suddenly too much for him to handle. A feeling of disorientation rose within him, and he stopped in his tracks and put out his right hand to steady himself against the stone slab. A few seconds sufficed to calm his fears that he was about to fall over. He lifted his left hand, his sword hand, and held it in front of his face, studying it. His palm was encased in a reddish gauntlet that left only his fingers free. And the size of his hand… it was larger than he was able to comprehend at this moment. He flexed his fingers experimentally. Was it really possible, what had just happened…?

A flash of white caught his eye: his tiny fairy companion had emerged from his green cap and now hovered before him. The white glow that encompassed her small body had dimmed a little as a reflection of the concern she was feeling.

"Are you all right, Link?" she asked anxiously.

He studied his hand for a few more seconds and then dropped it to his side once more. "I… I feel strange, Navi," he replied slowly.

"Well, that's understandable; you _did_ just advance in time seven years…."

He shook his head. "It's not that. …Not _all_ that. It's more…." He paused a moment, seeking the right words, as his gaze became fixed on a random spot on the other side of the room. "I feel almost like… someone is calling for me."

The fairy flew into his line of sight, her tiny wings fluttering rapidly, and though she had no visible face, Link knew she was staring directly at him. "Calling for you? This whole world is calling for you. You heard what Rauru said about Hyrule's current state. You should hurry up and—"

"No. It feels more… distant… than that. I can't explain it."

"Distant?" Navi repeated, puzzled. But Link offered no further clarification. A brief silence fell, broken only by the soft _tap, tap_ of the young hero's boots against the floor. He made it to the bottom of the short set of steps and then stopped again.

In truth, what was bothering him at the moment extended far beyond the odd sensation he had just mentioned. There was something else—something that ate away at his very core like a disease but would never be spoken of for fear of sheer embarrassment. There had been something he was supposed to remember. As he stood before the Pedestal of Time as a child and prepared to remove the Master Sword from its resting place, he had made a vow to himself: if he remembered nothing else, he would remember this. It was something urgent; that much he knew. But as for the rest of it….

A detail revealed itself: it was something he was to ask Rauru, the Sage of Light, about. What additional answers could _he_ provide? It was not at all clear. One by one, the particulars of the matter slipped out of Link's mind; the harder he racked his brain for them, the farther away they seemed. He wanted to howl with frustration. Never mind that he had never been the type of person that howled about anything.

Suddenly, he became aware that Navi was still looking at him closely. Whatever this "something" was that he was supposed to remember, it was not something he would have mentioned to her. A change of subject was in order.

"What did you do during the seven years?" he asked, and was pleased when his voice did not shake.

Navi fluttered her wings energetically. "I slept."

Link could feel his eyebrow rising at that. "That would be a _very_ long nap."

"Tee hee!" the fairy giggled. Her glow had since returned to its normal brightness, and now she zipped back and forth above her companion's head as a sign of her delight. "Looks like the goddesses' chosen hero does have a sense of humor after all!"

"Hush," Link admonished her, flicking his hand in her direction in a good-natured attempt to bop her over the head. As he did so, he found himself smiling. A small smile, but better than nothing. And it felt good.

"Where to next?" he asked after the brief silliness was over with.

"Only one way to go from here; he's in the way over there." She flew a few feet toward the circular chamber they had just come from, where a Sheikah youth now stood, blocking the Pedestal of Time from view. "If we believe his words, then it seems we have temples to find."

"Temples," he mused. It seemed as good an objective as any. And at least it would get them out of here. _This_ place, with its austere black-and-white décor and the shadows that lingered in the far corners, had begun to be faintly disturbing. The Sheikah's presence in the other room was somewhat superfluous; Link would not have gone to the Pedestal of Time to relive this "instantaneous seven-year journey" for all the Rupees in Hyrule.

"All right, then," he told his tiny friend. "Let's go." Armed with fresh resolve, he strode toward the exit. Whatever awaited him on this quest he was on, it would clear his head. And as for these strange feelings he was experiencing, either they would fade away, or some explanation would come to light. Until that time, it would be best to ignore them as much as he could.

As he descended the steps at the temple's exterior, a chill wind ruffled the sleeves of his green tunic. It was very dark out here, dark as deepest night; the sky was a charcoal black, streaked here and there with clouds that looked almost purple. Gone were the dogs that had once prowled this small courtyard by night, and even the grass was brown and dead. The only living thing in this area was the constantly howling wind, whose mournful sound inspired thoughts of desolation, of devastation….

An icy sensation ran down Link's spine as he found himself being gripped with a feeling that he had not experienced to this degree since his very first battles inside the Deku Tree.

Fear.

Trying to calm himself, he hurried across the small courtyard, past the four Gossip Stones that stared at him with their piercing gazes, and down the stairs that led into the Castle Town marketplace. But whatever he had seen thus far, it could not possibly have prepared him for what he was to see next.

Some force—whether of monsters or magic—had completely laid waste to the marketplace. The smooth stone pavement had been reduced to gravel that crunched underfoot. All around the square were gray, burnt-out husks of buildings, some of which had collapsed wooden structures in front of them; these had most likely been stalls and stands used by the town's merchants, but they were so broken that their original function could not be confirmed with any hope of accuracy. There was no sign of a single living soul anywhere. And here, too, the wind howled, carrying with it dark clouds of ash.

His heart sinking further with every step, Link headed for the opposite side of the market's main square. Memories of the bright, bustling town from seven years ago swam to the front of his mind as if to taunt him, and he felt himself being filled with a burning anger toward Ganondorf, who had apparently hated this place—a corner of his own world—so much that he had been motivated to carry out an attack such as this. At least the smell here was of fire and ash; there was no stench of decay that would indicate dead bodies. Hopefully, the citizens had been able to flee.

Having reached the far side of the square, he examined the spot that had once served as the entrance to the back alley. It appeared that debris had fallen from a neighboring building, and the narrow passage was now blocked—

A high, shrill cry suddenly split the air. Link froze in the middle of reaching out to touch the fallen debris, and in the next moment, when he tried to move, he found that he could not. It was as if he were paralyzed….

"ReDeads!" Navi shrieked.

A split second passed—nothing—and then he shuddered in pain as a set of jaws clamped down on his shoulder. A powerful chill emanated from that spot. Like the monster was draining the warmth—the life—out of him. At last the paralysis wore off; he swung his gauntleted hand upward to smack the creature in the face. It uttered a groan and fell back, and the young warrior turned around laboriously.

At least five or six lanky brown figures stood before him, with their empty, lifeless faces that so resembled the Spooky Mask he had given to the little boy in the Kakariko graveyard.

He reached for his sword, but before his fingers could so much as brush against the hilt, his arm was intercepted. Another ReDead chomped down on his forearm while one of its comrades slapped _him_ in the face, as if attempting to make him dizzy. Shakily, he stepped backward until he hit the wall of a building; the metal rim of his shield dug painfully into his back as the monsters before him converged on their prey. They did not use their paralysis-inflicting cry again; it was as if they knew they did not need it. Link felt himself slowly sinking down under their onslaught while his life force seeped away. The scent of blood was in the air now—_his_ blood. So much for his heroic destiny, he thought dimly. _For then it came to pass that the great hero emerged from the Temple of Time and was quickly brought low by forces of the undead…._

"Link!" Navi's panicked shout tore through his hazy consciousness. "Your ocarina! _Use the Sun's Song!_"

"The Sun's Song… right…" he muttered. The world had begun to blur in front of his eyes, but he could still move his limbs; that was something. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, he motioned with his left hand as if trying again to reach for the sword hilt over his shoulder—

As expected, they lunged for his arm. Swiftly, he dug around in his pockets with his right hand. The Boomerang fell out onto the ground; that was no good…. Finally his hand closed over the smooth surface of the Ocarina of Time. He fumbled with it to bring it into the proper position, raised it to his pallid lips, and had just enough breath to produce the six quick notes of the song. They were weak, warbling… but the gods heard them. The attacking ReDeads immediately froze in place while their entire bodies took on a white coating to symbolize that they had been struck by the sun's brilliant light. Dropping the ocarina, Link straightened up and took a step away from the wall. Another moment saw him drawing his sword and adopting a combat stance. A few magic-charged spin attacks were all it took to finish the job.

Sweat dripped to the ground as he hunched over to catch his breath. That had been close, he thought, looking down at the crumpled bodies that lay in a semicircle at his feet. Too close. There was a taste of blood at the back of his throat; he worked his tongue backward and spat. The red of the substance that spattered on the ground looked even brighter than usual against the dull gray and brown of the gravel-covered dirt.

"Thanks for the tip about the song, Navi," he rasped.

"Anytime," the fairy replied graciously. She drifted closer to the ground as if she, too, wanted to study the fallen ReDeads. "I must say, that wasn't a very good first battle… but maybe you just need time to get used to your new adult body."

That last part was definitely true. Swinging the sword around just now had felt vastly different than it had as a child—but it was something that, if he could only adjust to it, would not be a bad change. An immense amount of power had coursed through his arms, despite his weak state and the injuries he had suffered. Suddenly, it made sense why Rauru had held his spirit in the Sacred Realm for seven years….

"But anyway," Navi continued, "Sheik recommended that we head for Kakariko Village. Shall we…?"

He shook his head. "I'd like to see what's going on in the castle first." A quick glance around the square revealed no more ReDeads in the vicinity; accordingly, he sheathed his sword and picked up his ocarina and boomerang where they had fallen. This done, the debris that blocked the back alley captured his attention for one more moment. He pushed on it briefly, enough to convince himself that it was too heavy to be moved, and then set out toward the castle.

Or rather… toward _a_ castle.

The area that extended off the market did bear some passing resemblance to the piece of countryside that had once held Hyrule Castle. The wide grayish road curved off to the right as it had back then, though the green hills that had flanked it were now ugly, formless mounds with a black, charred appearance. A few slabs of white stone, remnants of the gate that used to block entry to the castle grounds, lay broken and half-buried in these mounds. But as for the castle itself… it was as if someone had simply removed the old one and dropped a new one down in its place. The new castle was little more than a tower, black and gray in color, with spikes and spires everywhere to give it a forbidding appearance. A thick, unnatural-looking cloud rotated around the tower's peak as if to confirm that this tower and its master had nothing but foul intentions toward the light and peace of Hyrule.

As Link stood there on the wide road and absorbed this sight, he could feel his eyes growing wider with each passing second. The tower was illuminated from below, he noticed. And the temperature of this area was very high, much higher than it had been in the market….

He moved slowly forward, and that was when he saw it. The black-and-gray castle did not rest on the ground; the piece of land that held it was suspended over an immense lake of red-orange lava. The molten liquid flowed inward to the lake's middle, where it formed a dark vanishing point. Was it this lake that had swallowed the old castle?

Horrific thoughts seized him, and he stood motionless at the edge of the cliff, staring down into the glowing lake below. He reflected on his time in the old castle: avoiding the guards, talking with Princess Zelda in the courtyard. All of it was gone now; Hyrule's capital, a stronghold of truth and justice, had been supplanted by this—a place of hatred, of eternal punishment. And punish it would… punish the world simply for existing. At this point, tears stung his eyes for the first time since he had awakened as an adult; but he blinked them back quickly as his shock and sadness turned into something resembling wrath. He clenched his left hand into a tight fist.

It appeared that Hyrule had truly become—as Rauru had said—a "_world of monsters_."

...

High in the tower, a figure stood near the top of the uppermost staircase and looked out a narrow window that had been built into the wall. The figure was tall and powerfully built, clad in black armor and a red cape; its eyes were orange, its hair a fiery bright red, and its face sported the medium-dark complexion of the desert people. Ganondorf himself—formerly the King of Gerudo Thieves, now the great King of Evil.

This window that he was looking out of was situated just below the cloud that encircled the tower's summit, enabling him to see the ground far below. At the moment he was watching the approach of what looked like a tiny green speck. The speck advanced slowly to the edge of the cliff and then stood there, staring dumbly at the tower before it.

Ganondorf chuckled, clenching his fist and examining the back of his gauntlet where a golden Triforce symbol gleamed—its top third shining brighter than the rest. When his Triforce of Power had begun to resonate… it was then that he had known. So, the kid had finally woken up. The consequences of that were clear: the war was about to begin anew.

Returning his gaze to the green speck, he thought back to his actions from seven years ago. The kid had given him quite a scare back then; he had nearly unraveled everything, to the point that something had to be done. Luckily, that fool of a Sage of Light had decided to seal the kid's spirit away in the Sacred Realm at a time when Ganondorf himself had also been there. After he touched the Triforce, he had gone directly to the place in the Temple of Light where the kid's spirit slept and waited patiently for a moment when the Sage was not looking. His goal was not to kill the kid, of course; if he did that, then the gods would simply appoint a new hero, and possibly one who would not be quite so malleable. Nor could he strip the kid of his powers or give him any obvious problems that would be immediately noticeable. No… this had to be something subtle. Undetectable. He had cast his spell carefully, to accomplish the necessary effect and no more. And it had worked. If nothing else, the reaction the kid had shown just now acted as proof that Ganondorf's idea had played out exactly as planned.

Gradually, the green speck moved away from the cliff, and then it was gone—vanished in the direction of the destroyed marketplace. Ganondorf watched it depart and then ascended the remaining stairs toward his personal chamber at the top of the tower. Yes… there was no need to fear additional setbacks. The phantom he had sent to the Forest Temple would provide a nice first test for the kid; hopefully, the kid would pass this test. If he did, then Ganondorf would be in the clear—for now, and for all time. For this was about much more than these seven years of Hyrule's history. In a way, he had already taken the loss on this version of Hyrule. He could feel now, deep within his soul, how his reborn self would awaken in the far future; often, when he closed his eyes, he could see images of the fire and destruction that would ensue. All he had to do to secure that future as his own was hold his course here. As long as he did that, and kept a careful eye on the kid, everything would fall into place.

He entered his personal chamber, which was fringed by tall stained-glass windows and suffused with a strong orange glow, and sat down at the organ that stood on the far side of the room. Stretching out his fingers, taking one more long look at his Triforce symbol, he set his hands to the keys and began to play a simple melody. In seconds, the tune he had chosen seemed to coalesce around him: a bastardization of Zelda's Lullaby, the song of the Royal Family. For who was the "Royal Family" now? Who controlled Hyrule? Only one person—a Gerudo-born man who wielded the power of the gods themselves.

Far below this chamber, the Dinolfos and other monsters that had been installed as guardians looked up in confusion as their ears caught two distinct sounds: the deep, resonating notes of the song, interlaced with an uncontrollable demonic laughter that echoed down the winding staircases.


	3. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** Thank you to everyone who has read, favorited, followed, or reviewed! Your support has definitely energized me to keep this project going. It should be fun!

A note about notation: I'm going to use double colons ":: ::" to indicate conversations that are carried out through the Ocarina's magic.

Finally, a small warning: in writing this chapter, it became necessary to add in a location that is not canon to the game. I may make similar additions in future chapters, but don't worry—they won't be _too_ "far-out" and will always be restricted to what I directly need for the story :)

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**Chapter 2**

The darkness of night still ruled the sky as Link passed through the old wooden gateway that marked the entrance to Kakariko Village. It was probably the wee hours of the morning by now, as the moon was very low in the sky, but no trace of the coming dawn could be seen yet….

_Wait._

He paused as he was about to come up to the lone tree that stood near the village's center. Something was different about the lighting in this area—yes, only in _this_ area, for he had not noticed it back at the entrance. The tree before him, the buildings beyond the tree, and even the tall walls on either side of him had an almost reddish tinge to them, like the village was covered in flames that were invisible save for the glow that they put out. This glow was distinctly unsettling to look at, and it put him in mind of the lava-filled pit he had seen beneath that evil-looking, black-and-gray castle.

Warily he looked around, right and then left—and then he saw it. A gleaming pink cloud spun slowly around Death Mountain's high peak. The glow he was seeing was most certainly a reflection of the light from this cloud. It was a wonder that he had not noticed it back in Castle Town—but, he reminded himself, he would have been facing the other way upon his exit from the Temple of Time. And then, once he entered the old marketplace, he would have been too distracted by the widespread destruction to be aware of anything else.

The cloud over the castle had been sinister, but at least it had looked like a cloud, with the normal gray and white hues. _This_, on the other hand, was something else altogether. Otherworldly…

"Link?"

Navi's voice brought the young hero's thoughts back to present matters. Turning, he saw the fairy hovering at his eye level, as she always did when she particularly wanted to talk to him. In the distant cloud's odd red glow, even her small body looked faintly pink. "Still here, Navi," he mumbled.

"You're not exactly acting like it. And, if you ask me, you _really_ don't look well."

That was easy to imagine. The battle with the ReDeads had sapped a great deal of his energy—and then, of course, the walk from Castle Town here to Kakariko had eaten up more of his strength, along with a large chunk of the night. His face was probably colorless—as colorless as his legs felt weak right at this moment.

"I think…" Navi went on, "I think what you need is some good food."

Food. Now _there_ was an agreeable thought. Wordlessly, he sifted through his belongings in search of something edible. Unless he wanted to make a diet out of Deku Nuts, his best bet would be the two glass bottles he carried with him—but, sadly, even that was not to be. One bottle, which he had obtained at Lon Lon Ranch, was empty; the other, which he had found at the bottom of Lake Hylia, had three blue bugs in it.

Curious, he held the second bottle up and flicked his index finger against the glass to make sure the insects were still alive. They were. He had been interested in the strangest things as a child, he thought as he watched them skitter around. And yet, he had never been able to find out if they had any interesting secrets. Removing the cork stopper from the bottle's neck, he tilted the bottle downward and held it close to the ground for a few seconds to let the little creatures out.

"Looks like we're going to have to find some food in the village," he said at last.

"Which is exactly what I had in mind when I first made the suggestion," Navi returned. "Come on." And then, after they had started moving again: "Just like you to put bugs in your bottles—instead of, you know, an _actual_ potion or something…."

Link shook his head, hiding a smile, and decided to ignore that last remark. Navi had been a helpful companion on this journey, but she could be critical at times. And more than a little sarcastic.

As he walked up the stairs that stood directly in front of the village's old well, his eyes fell on a red building to his right. If he remembered correctly, that building had been under construction seven years before. However, any hope of finding food there was immediately quashed when he ascended the stairs that led to the building's door. It was now a shooting gallery.

"Well, that's too bad," Navi remarked.

She was cut off by a red-gloved human hand rising into her field of view. "Look at this, Navi."

"What?"

The hand rose even more to point at the sign to the right of the door, which featured a faded painting of a target with an arrow sticking out of it. "That's the same design that was over the old shooting gallery in the Market."

"Yes, I remember you were very fond of that place. And?"

"It means that someone, at least, was able to escape when Ganondorf attacked."

That did seem to be the case; the sign was by no means freshly painted. Navi let her gaze linger on it for a moment or two and then looked back at Link—and when she did, she observed that this inference he had drawn obviously meant a great deal to him. His blue eyes were gleaming in a way that had nothing to do with the light of the cloud that hovered far above the village. Happiness, maybe. Or triumph? Whatever it was, it remained until he blinked, and when he opened his eyes again, they suddenly looked almost clouded. His head bowed as a low groan escaped his lips.

Swiftly, she flew toward him and bopped him very gently on the side of the head. "Come on, Link—you can't pretend I didn't see that. We can inquire about the villagers later."

Link lifted his head and studied his fairy friend. She had always been observant. And this time, she was absolutely right: they needed to keep moving.

Leaving the shooting gallery, the pair headed in the direction of Death Mountain, looking for more painted signs that would point a building out as a shop or other business. When they had almost reached the border with Death Mountain Trail, they were half in luck: the buildings on either side of them had familiar Castle Town Market paintings over their doors, but as for the signs that hung on the doors themselves….

"_Bazaar, open only during the day. Medicine Shop, closed until morning_," Link read, discouraged. It seemed that this village was as low on food-related businesses as it had been seven years in the past. Evidently, the only remaining option was to play the Sun's Song and try his chances in the Medicine Shop. Even if medicine was not what he wanted at this point in time.

"Wait," Navi said suddenly as he was in the process of pulling out his ocarina. "Look over here."

Putting the ocarina away again, he followed the fairy around a corner, and then he saw it: the side of the Bazaar building that faced the Death Mountain Trail had a small wooden door built into it. This door was inconspicuous, located as it was near the far edge of the building, well off the walking path where almost no one would think to look.

"Two shops?" he wondered aloud as he walked over to take a closer look. The door had no sign above it, only a small plaque that had been nailed to the wood at about eye level:

_Potion Shop for the Everyday Hylian  
~Open Nightly~_

That was an odd name for a shop, he thought. What did the common people need potions for? Were they embarking on expeditions to Hyrule's dungeons? An image rose in his head of villagers walking into caves and such with absolutely no idea of what awaited them there, and he frowned heavily. "Bad idea," he murmured.

"What's a bad idea?" Navi asked.

He shook his head and reached silently for the door handle. Since the place was open now, he might as well check it out. Hopefully, it would have something that tasted better than what the Medicine Shop had to offer.

Once inside the shop, he closed the door behind him… and was immediately brought to a standstill by the sharp, pungent odor that filled the air. It was not that he was a stranger to unpleasant smells; on the contrary, he had gone up against quite a few of them in the course of this journey. Up to this point, the various volcanic gases from Dodongo's Cavern had earned the dubious honor of being the worst, but _this_… this was right up there as well, he thought as he felt his nose wrinkling. Like the volcanic smell, it hung heavy in the air and pressed on the lungs, making breathing difficult. There was also a particular quality, or flavor, to it. It was… not _rotten_, but… acidic. Yes, very slightly acidic. Almost like something from Jabu-Jabu's belly.

As that comparison completed itself in his mind, his own stomach did a queasy flip-flop, but he battled the feeling and forced himself to turn his attention to other things. The layout, for instance. The small room had a long counter running down one side and circular tables scattered throughout the rest of the space. There were quite a few people in here, some seated at the tables, others on wooden stools that had been pushed up against the long counter. Most of the shop's patrons had a scruffy look to them, a large proportion of them had some amount of dirt on their clothes, and there was not a sword, bow, or spear to be seen. Definitely not "adventurer, dungeon-crawler" types. And they were all eating… nothing, apparently: the tables and counter held quite a few glasses and mugs, but no plates or bowls. He sighed. It seemed that food was still hard to come by, but he could make do with just a beverage for now.

Cautiously, he approached the shop's proprietor, who stood on the other side of the long counter. The man was huge, with a burly chest and extremely thick arms; Link quickly identified him as the owner of the Bazaar. So. That was why this place was in the same building. He ran that business by day and this one by night.

The huge man was in the process of polishing a tall glass, but he looked up as his peripheral vision noticed movement. "Ah, a customer!" A smile slowly spread across his face as his slightly cross-eyed gaze took in the person who stood on the other side of the counter. "And a swordsman, no less…. We don't get too many of your sort in these parts anymore. What can I get you?"

Link glanced at the foreign-looking bottles that lined the shelves behind the counter and then decided to forego fancy potions. "I'll have your biggest glass of Lon Lon Milk, please."

The huge man dropped the glass he was holding and barely managed to catch it before it shattered to pieces on the counter. "My biggest glass of…? I don't believe I have a mix called—"

"It's not a mix, sir," Link said patiently. "It's sold at the ranch and is of very high quality. But if you don't sell it here, I will take any milk that you do have."

The proprietor blinked his beady eyes a few times and then looked intently at Link while he resumed his polishing work. "You look like a paying customer…" he muttered finally. "All right. I'll see if I have any in the back." With that, he put the glass and cloth down and disappeared through a door that stood next to the shelves.

As soon as he was gone, silence reigned in the small shop. That was not right; previously, there had been a low drone of conversation. Feeling eyes on his back, Link looked around: all the customers except those in the very far corners were staring at him. Some even looked like they had frozen with their mugs partway to their lips. And Navi's white glow was nowhere to be seen; she had taken refuge underneath his green cap.

Trying to hide his irritation, he refocused his gaze on the counter before him. The pungent smell was adding to his already faint feeling, and being the center of attention like this was not helping either. He reached out and put his hand on the counter to steady himself.

After several minutes of this, a loud _bang_ of door against wall announced the return of the proprietor, who was now carrying a large metal mug. "You're in luck, young man," he declared as he set the mug down on the counter. "Fortunately for you, I have a pet cow in the back room."

Raucous laughter erupted at this. Some people banged their fists against table or counter as a sign of their mirth, and there were several grown men who were almost in tears from laughing too hard. Link frowned as he stared at the door that led to the back room. What he had seen when the door was open had not looked large, and this building—with this room, the back room, and the Bazaar—was certainly not big enough to also contain another room with a cow in it. Was that the joke? He did not like not getting it. Muttering a quick thank-you under his breath, he extracted a purple Rupee from his wallet and tossed it onto the counter. It was far too much, of course, but hopefully it would give the proprietor a strong reason to refrain from cracking any more jokes. This done, he picked up the mug and retreated to a table in an isolated corner of the room. He removed his shield, set it down on the floor next to his chair, and took his seat.

Closing his eyes briefly, he tried to relax and then lifted the mug to his lips. The surprise was immediate: wherever this milk had come from, it was cold and delicious. Even as he took his third swallow, he could feel his head clearing and energy returning to his body. He swiftly drained a little more than half of it and then sat hunched over, both hands clutching the mug as he let his mind wander. For this was a good time to think… and to process. Words that he had only half comprehended at the time, words of heroism and prophecy, danced through his mind. He pondered how he was going to do it all—prove those statements of Rauru's and Sheik's to be true—with this new body that he was not used to yet, and especially without his old repertoire of items. Even touching his favorite weapon from his childhood, the Slingshot, was out of the question for fear his larger, stronger hands would snap the elastic altogether. How far could he get with only a sword, a few Bombs, and a handful of Deku Nuts?

Thoughts like these were not pleasant, but they did not linger long. In their place rose something else: the image of a face. It was a girl's face, smiling as always, with large blue eyes and green hair that hung to just above shoulder level.

Saria.

What had become of her since he had seen her last? The time he had spent in the Sacred Realm had seemed to him to be only a moment, but to everyone else in the world, it had been seven years. Anything could have happened during such a long absence, and Sheik had said that an evil presence had arisen in the forest. He hated it—hated his absence, and hated himself _for_ his absence. Saria could have been hurt by the evil presence. Or, less life-threatening but equally traumatic, she could have worried about him. And the other Kokiri: they could have worried as well. His closest friends from his childhood had all held a firm belief that anyone who left the forest would die. And so, he had to go back. To reassure them. He would go as soon as he could, to check on their safety and also to show them that he had not collapsed immediately upon crossing the border….

Sudden, heavy footsteps shattered his reverie. Looking up, he beheld a husky man dressed in typical village clothes. He was not one of the customers from before, but he held a mug in his slightly wavering hand. There was something… not all there… in his eyes, and even at a distance of a few feet, the stench of his breath was obvious: the same stench that permeated this entire place.

"Yesshh… you've been here a while, kid," the man stammered. "I came over… because I wanted to see if it was true." He leaned down as if to look in Link's mug. "And, by Nayru's goodness—it _is_ true!"

"What is true, sir?" Link asked in a polite tone that he hoped concealed his rising impatience.

"Thisss!" the man answered. Reaching out his hand, he clapped Link hard on the shoulder as he lowered himself into a chair. "I like you, kid," he pronounced, slamming his mug onto the table for emphasis. "You've got guts—ordering milk in a place like this."

Oh. This… _again_. Link stared at the pale brown liquid that had sloshed over the rim of the man's mug and was now forming a puddle on the table's surface. "I need to keep up my strength," he said quietly.

The man's vacant eyes seemed to stare at him. "You really don't get it, do you. Well... not what I expected." He took a swig of his brown liquid and then narrowed his eyes at the young warrior next to him. "But now that I look at you… that green getup of yours looks _different_. Where are you from?"

Link hesitated for a heartbeat and then decided that this strange man was not to be trusted. "I was in this village once, a long time ago," he said evasively. "But I don't remember this place. Is it new?"

"Damn right it's new!" the man declared enthusiastically, pointing with his mug in the direction of the proprietor behind the counter. "_He_ opened it shortly after we all fled here from Castle Town, and you can bet your green hat that we're grateful for it. There's some of us who really need it, what with all the crap that's going on out there."

"'Out there,'" Link repeated. "You mean, out in Hyrule Field?"

"In Hyrule Field and everywhere!" The man raised his mug to his lips once more. "They say the world's become nothing more than a giant curse. Seriously. You can't even get somewhere out in that field without the sky darkening out of nowhere as you get close. You're in clear daylight, and then all of a sudden it's like you're standing in a patch of midnight. It's…" the man faltered and let out a loud hiccup, "…_freaky_."

That last word sounded so odd coming from a full-grown, middle-aged man that Link felt an amused smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. But the sky darkening in the field? He had not noticed any such phenomenon during his trek here from Castle Town, which was perhaps to be expected, given that he had been traveling at night. "Have you seen this happening as you approach the forest?"

"F-Forest?"

"Yes. The forest in the east of Hyrule, south of Zora's River."

"Ohhh. No. No way I'd go out that far. I've seen it over by Castle Town, and even by the ranch."

This was unexpected. Link paused in the middle of lifting his own mug. "The ranch, you say?"

"As I live and breathe. That's right… the harmless little ranch is _cursed_. Some say it's because the old man was kicked out, but"—the man shrugged—"I don't put much stock in that theory. He was always such a lazy bum; I reckon the place is better off without him."

"I suppose you mean Talon. Who kicked him out?"

"Aww, why the long face? The guy's not _dead_ or anything. The woman who lives down by the tree in the village square took him in, and when he's not driving everyone insane with that snore of his, he's leeching food and drink off her like the leech he is."

Talking about Talon like this was simply not to be borne. Link took a deep breath to calm himself before his anger exploded. "And what about…"

"His daughter?" The man grinned toothily. "She's still in the _cursed_ ranch. Why? Gonna rescue her or somethi—"

He hiccuped again and blinked a few times, and when his small eyes focused on Link once more, it was clear that something else had captured his attention.

"You know… that's a_ niiice_-looking sword you've got there, kid."

"Thank you," Link replied gruffly, but this odd stranger would not be put off so easily. Lifting an unsteady hand, he pointed it in the direction of Link's left shoulder.

"All with the fancy blue hilt…. It looks almost like… something… like I've…."

There was a pause of a fraction of a second, and then a terrifying gleam of recognition appeared in the man's bleary eyes.

"Link—quick—!" Navi exclaimed from under his cap. But the sound only appeared to pique the man's curiosity more. Still holding his hand extended, he leaned even farther forward—

A sudden _crash_ sounded: he had miscalculated the amount of leeway he had and had fallen out of his chair. Link stood up quickly, finished his milk off in one huge gulp, picked his shield up, and was back outside before the man could even realize that he was now on the floor.

Navi showed herself with a flash of white and emitted a sound that resembled a relieved exhale. "Good escape," she said approvingly. "You wouldn't know this from growing up in Kokiri Forest, but the Master Sword is a legend among Hylians. You can't have people finding out who you are."

He sighed heavily. "I didn't choose this life, Navi…"

"Oh? Would you rather live like _them_?" She nodded her tiny head toward the door from which they had just come.

"Well…" He thought of the terrible smell in that room, and of the rough, uncouth man with the dull eyes and erratic movements, who could not even stay seated in a chair. "…Maybe not."

"See, it all works out," the fairy pronounced cheerfully.

"Are you sure? He did seem to recognize the sword…."

"That? Pshh. In an hour, he won't remember a thing about it."

_Remember_. Something about that word drilled mercilessly into Link's consciousness. Something cruel—something that hovered, cloaked by mist, just out of his mind's eye.

No. No. He had decided to ignore that feeling for now. Taking a ragged breath, he tried to refocus on the current discussion. "How… can that be?"

"What do you mean, how can that be?" She paused and looked her young companion directly in the face. "Wow. You… you _really_ don't get it."

"Get what?"

"Never mind—it's not important. Do you feel better?"

He nodded. "Much. I think the milk did the trick."

"Excellent. Shall we get back to business, then?"

"Yes. Let's look for whatever it is that Sheik wanted us to find here."

Having come to an agreement, the two set off down the stairs that led toward the center of the village.

"By the way…" said Navi as they were about to arrive at the bottom of the stairs, "if you're worried about Saria, you can always just play the ocarina to talk to her."

That made Link stop in his tracks. "How do you know that I was…?"

"Oh, come _on_! I haven't been your companion all this time for nothing," the fairy snapped, exasperated. "And I can observe quite a bit even from under your cap. You were being broody back there—sitting motionless in that tavern for so long—and the Link _I_ know would be broody only if he were worried about his friend who hasn't seen him in seven years."

"Well…" He hesitated. "Yes. You're right. And that's a good idea about the ocarina." With that, he descended the last few steps and then moved off to the left. Standing near the tall watchtower that overlooked the village, he took his ocarina out, closed his eyes to improve his concentration, and played Saria's Song, all while hoping against hope that the magic still functioned.

_::…Saria?::_

_::LINK?!::_

_::Yes…::_

_::Oh, Link, I'm so happy to hear your voice! I just knew I'd hear from you again!::_

_::It's been a while, I know. I hope you weren't worried?::_

_::Well… I _was_ worried. But not for your safety; I know you can take care of yourself. The last time we spoke, you were very upset about something. You never told me what it was, but I could tell that it was weighing on your mind. Is it taken care of now?::_

_::It… yes, it is. Listen, Saria, I don't have much time to talk right now. Are you and the others safe? What is going on in the forest?::_

_::Many things, and nothing good, I'm afraid. Ever since the Great Deku Tree withered, the forest hasn't been right, and recently things took a turn for the worse. I'm currently on my way to see what I can do about the situation. But don't worry: as of now, no Kokiri have been injured by what's out there.::_

_::That's good. Don't do anything too dangerous, all right? I'll be there to help you as soon as I can.::_

_::Okay. See you soon.::_

As Saria's voice faded, Link opened his eyes and allowed the spell to dissipate. Navi was hovering before him, looking at him expectantly…. Of course. She had not been able to hear the dialogue that had just taken place.

"She and the others are all right," he reported. "But we need to head for the forest as soon as possible. Things are bad there now that the Great Deku Tree is no longer around to repel evil power."

The fairy nodded wordlessly and began to fly in the direction of the staircase that connected this level to the village's bottommost level. Link gave a slight shudder as he returned his ocarina to his pocket—for he was battling a sudden wave of uneasiness that seemed to spread outward from his very heart. The feeling had its root in something Saria had said.

Upset? Why should he have been upset?


	4. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** At last, we're here: the point where things start to take a turn for the weird :P This chapter was fun to write, and I hope it's fun to read as well! As always, feedback is encouraged…

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Link hastened down the stairs that led away from Impa's old house and suppressed a frustrated growl. Quite a bit of time had passed since he had left the tavern, and yet he did not have a whole lot to show for how he had spent that time. After the conversation with Saria, his first stop had been the house where Talon was staying, where he had found the former ranch owner snoring away contentedly, much to the dismay of the other people in the house. From there, he had gone to Impa's house and spoken briefly to some of the current residents. These conversations had revolved around one of two themes. First was a piece of useful information: Impa had returned to the village some time before, though she had since gone away again. It was good to know that a potential ally was in the area—working somehow on the Royal Family's behalf—and it also provided strong evidence that wherever Princess Zelda was now, she was in safety. And as for the second theme? It was not so much a news item as an emotion. The villagers' morale was extremely low. Like the strange man in the tavern who had spoken of curses, many people had come across as nervous, and when the topic had turned to Ganondorf, the nervousness had become utter fear. The people of Kakariko obviously hated the former Gerudo King, even if none of them had said it in so many words. But as of yet, not a single soul had dared to go up against him.

It appeared that nothing was going right—here in Kakariko _or_ in the rest of the world. On the one hand was political oppression; on the other were odd phenomena such as the darkening skies and the cloud over Death Mountain. It would all have to be fixed somehow. And that was a major part of the reason why Link currently felt like screaming. It was positively infuriating: he wanted to make some headway against these malevolent powers but could not find the item he needed to even get started….

His thought processes came to a halt as he registered the amount of light around him. Dawn was imminent, and from this vantage point, he could see people throughout the village beginning to stir out of doors. That was good, even beyond the fact that light was a natural mood-booster. It could perhaps help him to find what he was looking for.

Having reached the bottom of the stairs, he eyed the red-roofed building immediately to his right: the only one in this part of the village that he had not checked out yet. He tried to remember who lived there but came up with nothing. That was not such a big surprise; he had not done much exploring in this area seven years ago, being distracted by his various other objectives. No matter. He was here now and could check the place out now.

A few long strides brought him to the building's front. He reached for the doorknob… and stopped.

"What is it?" Navi asked.

He put his index finger to his lips to silence her and leaned closer to the door. Soon enough, his sensitive ears caught some sounds from the other side. But where the interior of a residential home might be expected to produce certain types of sounds—shoes tapping against the floor as people walked about, pots and pans clanging during cooking—these were nothing like that. Instead, there was a rustling, and _not_ the typical type that might result from walking through a pile of fallen leaves. No, this was a rustling high up off the ground. And it was accompanied by something that resembled a snort. An inhuman snort, which no Hylian vocal tract was capable of producing.

A long minute passed, with several repetitions of the rustling and the snort but no other sounds. Link narrowed his eyes grimly and took hold of the doorknob—

In the next moment, he had snatched his hand away again. The doorknob was freezing cold. A similar chill emanated from beneath the door, announcing the presence of a force that was out of the ordinary. Whatever was in this building, it was something powerful. Something evil.

"I would not recommend going in there," said a quiet voice off to the left.

Startled, Link looked up in the middle of shaking his hand to restore feeling to it. A gray-haired old man in a blue-and-white robe and a blue hat stood a couple of feet away. His eyes were clear, indicating a sound mind, but he was severely hunched over, putting the top of his head somewhere around Link's shoulder level.

"What do you mean?" Link asked cautiously. "Why should I not go in?"

The old man stepped closer to Link and nodded his head in the direction of the door. "The family in that house is suffering under a grievous curse," he intoned softly. "It is unfortunate, certainly, but there are many unfortunate things in this world."

"I see." _A curse, again…._ "But… but if that's the case, then I want—"

"To help," the old man finished. "I would have expected no different from one such as you. However, you would be well served if you heeded my words. For your own good, young man. What is inside this house is not for your eyes to see."

"Is someone else working on breaking the curse?"

"Not to my knowledge."

Link had figured as much. But what did that mean, "_not for his eyes to see_"?

"He's right, Link," Navi interjected. "We can't have you stretching yourself too thin on this journey. You'll wear yourself out."

"Ho-ho," the old man chuckled. "The fairy is wise. But I can sense that you will not be put off so easily. In that case, there _is_ something you can do to help. If you see one of the small gold spiders that are all over Hyrule, you should kill it…."

Small gold spiders. He had run into a few during his childhood and had killed them because they looked like monsters. But it could not have been more than five or ten, and something told him that that would not be enough.

"I will look out for them, then. Thank you for the information, sir."

"Anytime, young man. Anytime."

The conversation apparently complete, the old man turned to go; but after a single step, he turned back and tilted his head upward to look Link directly in the eye. Link could have sworn that he saw a smile appear on the old man's wrinkled face.

"Now… was there something else?"

Link hesitated. There was an odd gleam in the old man's eyes, which one did not typically find among the elderly. It looked almost… mischievous.

"Well…yes," he replied slowly. "There is. I was told to look for an item that would help me in my quest. Have you heard any tales of a treasure hidden in this village? In particular, a treasure that could help a person gain entry to a building?"

"A treasure. Hmm. I wouldn't know anything about use, but I did hear that the old gravekeeper found something a number of years ago. Perhaps, if you visit him, he will tell you more about it."

"Very good," Link said, nodding emphatically. "That sounds promising. Do you know if he would be awake at this hour?"

A sudden frown appeared on the old man's face. "Ah, then you haven't heard. I am afraid the gravekeeper has passed away. And that means, if you wish to see him, you must visit him inside his grave."

Link's eyes nearly popped out of his head at that. "Inside his…?!"

"Don't worry, young man—I am sure your courage will see you through this ordeal. Believe in yourself…." With that, he turned around again, but not before the mischievous gleam returned to his eyes. He could be heard chuckling to himself as he shuffled away.

Wordlessly, Link started to walk in the other direction, toward the graveyard. Within a few steps, however, he had stopped and turned back around.

"Heroes don't stare," Navi muttered into his ear.

"What? Oh. I…"

"If you're wondering whether you'll look like that when you're his age, then I have to say… I don't think so."

"That's… good to hear," he mumbled as he resumed his former course. In truth, that question had _not_ been on his mind, but the question that had been could not be spoken of. There was simply no way to explain it. Navi could not possibly be brought to understand that that blue-clad old man had looked familiar somehow. Beyond the fact that he had once been a denizen of Castle Town. This was something… else….

Had the old man come to the forest before? Doubtful. And yet, no other explanations revealed themselves. Every rational sense seemed to forbid any such possibility, but the feeling of familiarity persisted. Very strange indeed.

Wrapped up in these thoughts, Link passed by an empty, unattended Cucco pen and traveled through the narrow passage that connected the graveyard to the village proper. Finally, he approached the arch labeled "Graveyard" and was brought back to the present when Navi asked him—in an oddly chipper tone—which grave he thought was the gravekeeper's.

"We're checking out his hut first," he declared firmly. "I'm not going into a grave if I can help it. Do you remember what happened in that one where we found the melody to the Sun's Song?"

"Yes—you were nearly killed by the poisonous green stuff down there as you tried to escape the ReDeads. It was ugly."

"Exactly. And so, we're going into this one only as a last resort. Come on." And he passed under the arch, not noticing the lingering, thoughtful look Navi sent in his direction.

The gravekeeper's hut stood off to the right, nearly level with the huge headstone that paid homage to the Royal Family's fallen adherents. Link had never set foot inside as a child—he had never had a reason to—but now, as he opened the door, he saw that the wooden structure was even smaller than it appeared on the outside. There was a bed off to the left and a dresser with a few drawers straight ahead. A book sat open on the top of the dresser, next to a bit of food and the melted remains of a couple candles.

Link glanced under the bed, and not finding any sign of a treasure, turned his attention to the dresser. One by one, he opened the drawers: there were some clothes, a feather quill or two, and not much else. Apparently, Dampé's lifestyle had been very austere.

Disappointed, he turned his attention to the gravekeeper's shovel, which stood propped against the side of the dresser, and hefted it experimentally while Navi glanced at the open book.

"It's his diary!" she exclaimed. "Put that shovel down and come over here. Look—he admits to having some kind of keepsake! And he says he'll give it to us if we visit him _in his grave_!"

Link chose to ignore the "I-told-you-so" tone of the fairy's voice. "Us? He's referring to us?"

"Not by name, of course. It's just '_whoever reads this_.' Which means, by the way, that he wanted someone to read it. Don't go accusing me of snooping around in people's diaries…."

"Wasn't going to," he returned as he looked down at the diary entry. "'_My stretching, shrinking keepsake_,'" he read aloud. A long-distance weapon, perhaps? That could be useful. "Now, did he…"

His voice trailed off as he saw the text written at the bottom of the page. "'_P.S. Pull the gravestone on the far left that has three green plants in front of it_.'"

"He knew which grave he'd be buried in?" Navi asked, bewildered.

"He was the gravekeeper. He probably set one aside for himself and left instructions with the other villagers. But you know what this means, right?"

As it turned out, she did. It meant they would not have to waste time searching graves at random.

A minute or two later, hero and fairy found themselves in front of the first stone in the row that was farthest from the tiny hut. "It's his, all right," said Navi, eyeing the inscription that had been engraved on the front.

"All right," Link muttered grimly. "Here goes nothing." Walking around to the stone's back, he grabbed its edges, whispered a quick prayer that the gods would forgive this disturbance of the dead, and began to pull. Despite the stone's heavy appearance, it slid across the ground with relative ease.

"Good, good," Navi stated. "Looks like there's some kind of hole under there…"

There was a pause.

"_Watch out!_" the fairy yelped.

Link looked up from his work in time to see a bright lantern spinning practically in his face. A purple, gray, and white figure with ethereal, empty eyes lurked just behind the lantern.

Swiftly, he raised his shield. The lantern gave a great _clang_ as it bounced off the metal, and the ghostly figure was knocked backward.

"It's a Poe!" Navi announced. "Remember, if you stare at it, it'll disappear!"

"I know," he murmured. Still holding his shield up, he fixed his gaze on a point just beside the Poe. Already, out of the corner of his eye, he could see the ghost readying its next attack. An unearthly snicker emanated from its mouth as it began spinning the lantern again, closer and closer—

_Now._

In one fluid motion, the young hero drew his sword and hacked hard at the Poe's midsection. The blow sent the Poe sailing toward the wall behind the row of gravestones, at which point it… disappeared?

"What…?"

"It's inside the wall," Navi explained. "Well done—now's your chance!"

It was true; the Poe was still nowhere to be seen. Link hurried around the gravestone to the hole he had uncovered and dropped down into it.

As he detected a flat surface coming up to meet him, he executed a roll to reduce the impact of his landing. Smiling to himself—he had gotten good at that maneuver—he stood up and took in his surroundings. By all appearances, he was now in some kind of underground shrine. He stood on a slightly raised stone platform that had bluish columns standing at its corners. Behind him was a wall covered with faded Hylian inscriptions. And in front of him was a solid, blue-and-black cave wall with a narrow opening in it. Immediately before this opening floated something pale.

A few steps in the direction of the floating object confirmed it: this was the ghost of Dampé. Part of his form was covered by his brown gravekeeper's garb; the other areas were now sheet-white and put out a faint white glow similar to that of a fairy. A halo hovered over his head, and in his right hand he held a lantern that resembled the one the Poe had had. But in terms of size and facial features, he looked much as he had in life.

Link stepped toward the ghost—cautiously, as his recent experiences with the Poe were still fresh in his mind.

"Hehehe, a visitor!" Dampé cackled. "Are you fast on your feet, young man?"

"Am I…?"

But Dampé was already receding into the narrow passage, his light and the light of his lantern growing dimmer by the second. "Follow me if you dare!" echoed down the passage.

"Link, I think you need to chase him!" Navi exclaimed urgently.

Biting back a curse, Link sprang from the raised platform and hit the gray floor running. Immediately, he had to step around a bit of fire in the middle of the passage; it appeared that Dampé was leaving these flames behind to make his opponent's life difficult. That was not such a big deal; Link had always been agile. He breezed around a corner and caught sight of the ghost disappearing around another bend a few feet ahead. Increasing his speed, dodging more fire that had been thrown onto the path, he rounded the second corner and found himself in a long straightaway with a couple of crossing passages—obviously not the right path—branching off the right side. The ceiling and walls here sported the same blue-and-black pattern as before, which would evidently be typical of this cave, and the hall was unadorned save for a pair of brilliant pink flames, crackling in large stands that stood against each wall.

_Pink _flames?

That was an odd color. A very odd color. But a strange feeling crept up within him as he raced past them—almost like he had… seen…

He shook his head to chase the thought away—rounded another corner—blinked—and suddenly he seemed to be running through a long, dark stone corridor with richly painted walls. Following someone… and the entity that floated before him was not the glowing white figure of Dampé, but rather a tall creature, brown as tree bark and with bright yellow eyes, that held a candle in one hand and an umbrella in the other. As this being turned to float up a staircase that opened up from the left side of the corridor, additional light fell on it: the light from a pair of pink flames—

He staggered, gasping. _What in Farore's name…_

The odd vision was gone as quickly as it had come, but something else replaced it: the image of another brown figure, shorter than the first, that stood rooted to a patch of green land amid a black nothingness—black void behind it, black abyss below it—and though it resembled a tree, it had a face as well: a mouth and a pair of eye sockets that showed a dark, bleak expression. It, too, was gone. And then there was pain—blinding pain—as the tree bark erupted over his own skin, transforming him—he stood on a pink flower amid a pool of water, in which he could see the reflection of his altered, orangeish-brown visage—he could feel his miserable fate creeping up behind him like a malicious, vengeful shadow—no matter how fast he ran from it—and everywhere there was pain, unbearable pain….

He cried out in agony, screamed for his life and what it had become. He screamed until he could scream no more, ran until he could run no more.

"Link!" a frantic voice cried above him. "Link, what's going on?!"

He blinked and lifted his head; he was back in the blue-and-black cave and—somehow—was still moving. "Sorry… Navi…" he gasped. Another corner loomed in front of him; he rounded it and summoned his last strength to lengthen his stride—

_BAM!_

He collided with a thick gray door that had just at that moment closed in his face. He crumpled instantly, and as his world went black, the snickering of a ghost rang in his ears.

When he opened his eyes next, he was somehow back at the beginning of the cave, near the raised platform with the columns. As he struggled to pick himself up off the floor, the light of Dampé's lantern flared around him.

"Heh heh… is this too much for you, young hero?"

"How… how do you know I'm a hero?" he asked, rubbing his pounding head.

The ghost grinned. "When you're in my position, you gain a certain… perspective," he pronounced gleefully. "I know, for instance, that you need the item I'm holding in this place. I'm happy to give it to you, but if you can't complete the required task…"

"No." Link had finally managed to stand up, and now he faced the floating ghost with what he hoped was a convincing display of resolve. "I will try again."

"Well, all right," said Dampé. "But don't say I didn't warn you…."

And just like that, the entire ordeal began afresh.

Taking a deep breath, Link tried to focus his attention on the rhythmic sounds of his footsteps. They were soothing, in a way. He passed the initial right turn making much better time than before, but around the next corner was the hallway with the pink flames that had started that… whatever it was.

"Careful!" Navi shouted.

The warning hit his ears right as he was making the turn. A glob of fire burned on the ground directly in front of him. Quickly, he swerved; the edge of the flames singed his clothing slightly, but no significant damage was done. He nodded his thanks to Navi and then fixed his gaze on the floor, straight ahead, on the tops of the walls—in short, everywhere _but_ the heart of the strange pink flames. He was coming up to them now, could hear their crackling on either side of him; he gritted his teeth and tried to focus—

The crackling receded into the distance.

He had made it.

Breathing a sigh of relief, he looked back at Dampé and followed the ghost through a handful of tight turns: right, left, left, right…. Then came the spot with the door that had closed on him earlier—this time, it was still open—and he passed the doorway, made a few more turns, ran down some steps into an open chamber littered with large black-and-blue rocks, veered right and then left into a new hallway whose walls featured a thick horizontal slash of blood-red amid the surrounding blue…

And in front of a corridor that extended from the right side of this hallway stood a pair of stands with more pink flames.

His heart skipped a beat—or three—and he stumbled again, barely recovering in time to sidestep around another of Dampé's fireballs.

"Link," Navi ventured, "maybe you should try again lat—"

"Not... a chance..." he panted. As long as he could still see Dampé turning into each new corner, all was not lost. And he had to finish—_had_ to, for there was no telling what another trip through this dank labyrinth might do to him. No matter how leaden his legs might feel at this moment. He pressed on, running as fast as he could, registering very little of the surrounding environment; his attention was fixated on the only thing that mattered, the ghostly gravekeeper who showed him the way. At one point he had to climb onto a ledge that stood at almost his entire height, and this ledge led into another sequence of corridors….

At last, as he ran along a narrow pathway that circled around an enormous, deep chasm, he spotted a doorway framed by a pair of normal-looking torches. There was no other way to go, and Dampé had already gone through; this must be the end of the course. The thought gave him a rush of new energy, and he accelerated toward the doorway even as a gray door was beginning its descent toward the floor—

He rolled just under the closing door and stumbled to a halt at the foot of a short staircase that led up to a wide raised platform adorned by another pair of torches. Dampé hovered next to the torch on the left side.

"You made quite good time for a beginner, young man!" said the ghost. "Quite, quite good. As a reward, I'll give you my Hookshot. Take good care of it, and be sure to come back sometime to race again!"

_Race again?_ Link thought to himself as he tried to catch his breath. No way—he'd rather be thrown into a pit with twenty Gohma Larvae.

Waving his lantern, Dampé dematerialized in a burst of blue flame, leaving only one last warning: to "_be careful on your way back… heh heh_." Soon afterward, a large treasure chest appeared in the middle of the raised platform, just beyond the top of the short staircase. Link ascended the stairs toward the chest, but before he could reach it, he found himself confronted with the trembling body of a terrified fairy, floating practically right in front of his nose.

"You're not taking the treasure yet; it'll only distract you. First, you're going to tell me what the hell that was back there—and I _don't_ mean when you almost hit those fireballs!"

He raised his eyebrow; he had never known Navi to swear. Her glow was very dim—so much so that if he had not already known what was amiss, he might have thought her ill.

"Well?!" she demanded.

"Calm down, Navi. What happened back there was…" He trailed off, studying the treasure chest, as he sought the proper word. "…A nightmare."

"A nightmare? While you were awake—while you were _running_?!"

"Yes."

"What was it about? What did you see?"

He shrugged. "It's not important."

"Not _important_, you say? I'd say it most certainly _is_ important if it had you screaming like… like…"

"Navi." Looking at her once more, he held his hand up to stop her rant. "I don't know what it was either, but whatever it was, it might come back if I dwell on it. We're just about done here, and despite what Dampé said just now, I don't plan to return. Let's move on, okay?"

"He also said he possessed additional perspective of some kind—too bad you didn't think to ask him about it…."

"As I've already explained: Not. Dwelling. I won't budge on this, Navi."

"Promise you'll tell me if anything out of the ordinary happens again?"

"Fine." And brushing past her, he opened the treasure chest. A little digging around in its bottom, and his hand had closed around the item within. It appeared that this "Hookshot," as Dampé had called it, consisted of a long chain with a hook on the end. Chain and hook were controlled through a trigger located on a handle that—much to Link's delight—fit very comfortably in his right hand. Holding it up, he aimed at various random spots on the wall and fired, and his good cheer started to return as he watched the hook bounce off the wall and come straight back to him. This was even better than the Boomerang, he thought. No need to waste time trying to get the angle of trajectory right; just point and shoot. This item's only flaw was that it was not the sort of weapon one took to a shooting gallery….

"If that hook sticks to something, the chain might pull you along with it," Navi said as she watched this little display. "Could help us get into the Forest Temple."

"My thought exactly. But right now, we need to get out of here." Without waiting for a reply, he headed for the far side of the platform, hopped off it, and went through the doorway beyond. Immediately thereafter, the door slammed shut, leaving him and Navi in a tiny room with two stacked blue blocks dead ahead.

Edging forward, he laid his hand on the lower block. That engraving on it, with a sun in the top middle shooting stylized beams downward….

"You remember that, right?" asked Navi. "That's a Block of—"

"Block of Time," he finished for her. A long moment passed, in which he did not move except to bow his head a little.

_Time. Hero of Time._

When he looked up again, the room was spinning before his eyes. No—he could not give in to the disorientation. Stubbornly, he blinked a few times and fought the feeling, and it subsided. Good. Whipping out his ocarina, he played the Song of Time; the two blocks dissolved into a thin column of blue light, revealing a long, narrow, upward-leading staircase. In seconds, he was running up it.

The staircase ended in a ledge that overlooked a large, bright room—far removed from the dim blues, blacks, and grays of the underground cavern. A huge wooden structure, like a circular disc with a pole jutting upward from the middle, rotated in the middle of this new room. The entire room, in fact, was tall and nearly circular in shape. This must be the interior of Kakariko's windmill.

Cautiously, Link jumped from the ledge to a narrow platform that was attached to the wooden pole, and from there leaped down to the edge of the room, away from the rotating disc. There was a melody being played in here, he noticed: a fast-paced, energetic tune. And there, straight ahead from where he had landed, was the source of the tune. A man in a pale blue shirt and dark blue shorts stood turning a crank on a music box of some kind. The sound traveled from the box up a pipe that ran behind the man's back and ended in a funnel-like projection just over his head. And his face…

Link recoiled involuntarily as he saw the man's expression. It was angry—seemingly full of an implacable wrath. That, perhaps, explained why he was turning that crank at such a manic speed. Every so often, an utterance would sneak its way out from between his gritted teeth: something along the lines of "_grrrrr_" and "_it's all that Ocarina kid's fault_" and "_I'm gonna mess him up!_".

Ocarina kid?

For a few long moments, the man did not notice that someone else was in the room, just stood there cranking out his strange song. Link stood motionless, listening to the song while his eyes went to the wooden platform he had jumped from, which seemed to rotate ever faster, around and around and around and around…


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"So, it really is true," Navi mused.

"Was it ever in doubt?" Link countered, lifting his gaze to the sky immediately above where he stood, just outside the tall walls that served as the boundary of Lon Lon Ranch. From this spot, everything was dark and cloudy as far as the eye could see—even if the rest of Hyrule Field was actually bathed in the bright sunshine of early morning.

"I don't like the look of this, Link," said the fairy, with some trepidation. "Remember, you can't afford to spend too much time here. We have things to do in the forest."

Link rolled his eyes. "Come on, Navi—you wouldn't have any idea what is going on in the forest if I hadn't told you what _I_ learned from talking to Saria. I know what our objectives are, but right now I have to check out what's going on _here_ and make sure everyone is okay despite this curse. And you have to admit that our trip to the forest will go a lot more quickly if they sell me a horse as I hope they will."

Navi was silent—surprised at Link's uncharacteristic crossness—and the young hero turned his steps toward the short incline that marked the entrance to the ranch proper.

As he rounded the last corner at the top of the incline, he resisted the urge to draw his sword. This phenomenon of the sky darkening _was_ very odd—almost as odd as the question of how a place like a ranch could become cursed.

With these thoughts swirling in his head, he made his way along the grassy path that separated the ranch owner's home from the stable. However, no monsters appeared to do battle, and even the sky had returned to normal now that he was inside the ranch. So far, so good, but he resolved to remain on his guard.

His destination was the large corral located in the center of the ranch's open area, behind the house and stable. Already, despite the early hour, a few horses were embarking on their daily laps around the corral's fence. The entrance sported an elaborately crafted metal gate; that was new. But it was open at this moment, allowing entry to the enclosed space within where a tall young woman stood brushing the mane of a yellowish-brown-colored horse. Good. Thus far, everything seemed peaceful. Normal.

The young woman was nearly as tall as Link himself, her hair a bright orange-red; he immediately recognized that hair as belonging to Talon's daughter. Not wishing to frighten her, he approached her slowly, and cleared his throat loudly when he was still several feet away. She turned… and gasped.

In the next moment, she reached out toward the horse she had been tending to, and giving it a pat on its hindquarters to send it on its way, she hurried in Link's direction, brush in hand.

"You are…" she said at last. "If I remember correctly… Link?"

He nodded.

"Wonderful!" she exclaimed. Her eyes sparkled. "You're the forest boy I met all those years ago! I knew you'd surface again someday!"

Now that she had remembered his name, he worked on doing her the favor of remembering hers. He took in her thick hair, her ankle-length pink skirt, and her white top with a yellow scarf tied neatly around the neck, and extrapolated backward to what she might have looked like seven years before. An image soon revealed itself: a young girl with the same reddish hair, clad in a one-piece white dress, running about at a frantic pace….

"…Romani?" he ventured.

The young woman gave a start. "No," she replied with a slight giggle. "I've never been called that. I'm Malon."

"Malon," he repeated. Of course; it rhymed with Talon. How could he think it was anything else? Even as he had that thought, however, another one was running its course, and he found his gaze drifting to her hands, to see if they showed signs of the calluses that result from using a bow without gloves. They had a small amount of dirt on them and looked a little rough—exactly the amount of dirt and roughness that one might expect for a person who engaged in moderate manual labor on a farm.

So, she did not use a bow. But that made no sense; why would a ranch girl use a bow? _He_ was a hero—or soon to be one—and not even _he_ had a bow….

The thought slowly faded, without a resolution, and he started to curse himself for his long silence, lest he appear rude. He looked up quickly, ready to apologize… and saw something very alarming: Malon's face had gone distinctly pink and was turning pinker by the second.

"Malon, are you well?" he asked anxiously, taking a step toward her. "Is it the heat? Can I do anything to help?"

She waved him off, laughing, but the color in her cheeks continued to intensify. "No, no, it's nothing like that; it's no hotter today than other days. I was just thinking… I'd been wondering what had become of you these past several years. And now that I see you—well, I have to say that it was worth the wait."

This was surprising. "Why?"

"Because"—her face was nearly crimson now—"well… you've become a very handsome man, Link."

_Handsome._

Above him, a faint giggle from Navi was audible, but he chose to ignore it as he formulated his response. "Thank… thank you. And, you too—you're very… handsome."

The giggle from above ceased abruptly, and Link found himself being divebombed by a dismayed fairy. "_The word is 'pretty,' you blockhead!_" she boomed.

Malon laughed again and reached out a hand as if to placate the fairy. "It's okay; I know what he meant. I'm sure the forest people have a different way of talking."

She was very easygoing, Link thought. And had a nice laugh; and the red in her cheeks had faded again to a somewhat milder pink, which was actually quite agreeable to look at….

"Say, Link," she went on, "do you remember the song I taught you?"

"…What? The song? Yes, of course." Reaching into his pocket, he took out his ocarina, and put it to his lips and played a simple melody. A long moment passed; Malon did not say anything or even move. Had he played it wrong? And then…

The only warning he had was a repetitive sound like thunder, coming from somewhere behind him. It was followed by a loud whinny, which gave him some clue as to what was coming; he started to turn around but had not quite accomplished that feat before he was nearly bowled over by a very excited horse. The brownish-red mare gave a delighted neigh and tossed her head so that it brushed against the top of his cap.

"She remembers you!" said Malon, clapping happily. "I knew she would!"

"Epona," he murmured, and felt a smile spread across his face as he observed how much the small filly from seven years before had changed. She was now large and majestic—even regal, he thought. As if to prove that someone else shared that opinion, a fancy saddle now rested on her back. And her black eyes gazed at him with something that looked like real affection.

Walking a couple of steps forward, he rested the side of his head against the beautiful mare's throat and raised a hand to stroke her white mane. The action was soothing—eased his mind. For some reason, it helped to calm that feeling he had that someone was calling for him; the voices receded into the background, quiet, muted. Thankful for this respite but nonetheless a bit melancholy, he let out a soft sigh, and Epona turned her head to push her snout against his shoulder, almost as if to say _Cheer up!_

"I see the two of you share a powerful bond," Malon remarked behind him. "That's wonderful. It's fortunate that you're able to reunite now, because things might have easily turned out a different way. A few years ago, we thought we had lost her."

Startled, he turned his head to look at the red-haired young woman. "Why? Was she ill?"

Malon shook her head. "Not ill. Stolen. Someone took her from the stable one night, and Father and I were nearly beside ourselves with worry. But then, only a few days later, she was returned safe and sound. We are very lucky to have her back—there's no telling what might have happened to her otherwise."

"I see," he muttered, putting his head back in its former resting place. He wanted to say that that must have been a terrible circumstance and he hoped they had found the culprit, but before he could summon the words, a series of images popped into his mind.

_(***)_

_Slowly, stealthily, Link tiptoed into the ranch. He hugged the left side, just beneath Talon's house, to make it more difficult for anyone looking out the windows to see him; it was the dead of night right now, but nighttime shadows did not provide perfect cover. At last he was level with the door to the stable, and he darted over, opened the door silently, and slipped through. Closing the door behind him, he slumped against it for a moment to catch his breath before continuing. No one else was inside the stable; thus far, everything was going to plan. Talon, Malon, and that odd worker of theirs must all be asleep._

_Moving away from the door, he crept across the room, passing the stalls where several horses slumbered. The young horse he sought was at the far end of the room, and _her_ dark eyes were wide awake. He sidled up to the stall and watched how she seemed to follow his every movement._

"_You knew I was coming, didn't you?" he asked, and regretted the statement in the next moment. He had spoken softly, but his voice still had a shrill, boyish ring to it that he imagined could bring the ranch people descending on him any second._

_As quietly as he could, he opened the stall's wooden door and walked inside. The eyes of the young Epona were still fixed on him, and they regarded him with something that might have been reproach._

"_Come on, Eps, we can't have that," he murmured under his breath. "You must think I'm selfish. Well, maybe I am. But it has to be this way. For the sake of… everything. Navi's asleep back in the forest; it's now or never. Are you in or not?"_

_He held his hand up to her, the palm facing outward, and she took a step forward to nuzzle it with her snout._

"_Good," he said, satisfied, and did a quick search of his various pockets to ensure that he had everything he needed. Everything was in order—including the bluish shape of the Ocarina of Time, newly acquired, staring up at him._

"_All right, then, Eps," he went on. "Let's go—quietly, now…." Putting a hand on the young filly's mane, just behind her head, he led her out of the stall, out of the stable, and finally into the wide expanse of Hyrule Field._

_(***)_

The images slowly receded—no, not the images, the _memory_. For this was a memory; that much was obvious, given its clarity. He had stolen a horse. Even if it were for only a few days, he had _stolen a horse._ Why had he not remembered that until now? And what had he needed Epona for?

One thing, however, was for certain: they could not remain on this subject a moment longer, or he would definitely end up on the enemy list of both Malon and her father. While he sought a new topic, his eyes fell briefly on Epona once more, and he could have sworn that the mare's mouth curved into a knowing, conspiratorial smile.

"Malon… your father…" he finally managed.

"Please, don't worry," Malon said firmly. "Yes, he's been sent away—if you've been to Kakariko, you've probably heard about the incident from everyone—but he writes to me regularly, and he's not unhappy. Mr. Ingo even said he might be able to come back if he promises to help more with the work and if I do a good job at _my _work."

Mr. Ingo—the man who had been Talon's employee seven years before? Had he staged some kind of coup?

"But enough of that," Malon continued, clapping her hands together. "Now that you're here, how would you like to take Epona for a ride?"

He nodded. "I'd love to."

"Excellent! Why don't you run a few laps here, inside the corral? In particular, see if you can jump those." She pointed to a pair of fences in the middle of the area, one short, the other taller.

He gave another nod, accepting the challenge, and climbed into Epona's saddle. "Let's go, girl," he muttered, patting her neck. She whinnied again and stomped her hooves eagerly, and then they were off.

Leaning forward in the saddle, he steered their course into a tight oval that would allow them to try both fences on every lap. Epona's speed increased quickly, from a trot to a gallop, and she rounded every bend with graceful precision. Jumping the fences turned out to be no problem; they cleared each one with room to spare. Every jump earned an enthusiastic cheer from Malon, and every time horse and rider passed the spot where she stood, she shouted something along the lines of, "_You're a natural at this!_" Yes… it seemed that he was. The techniques of controlling a horse came easily to him, a fact which somewhat surprised him even though he now knew he must have done some riding in his childhood; for he would have been riding bareback then, right? But that was of no consequence; what mattered was the sense of freedom that riding like this carried with it. He loved it. The wind rushed past his face, making his green cap flutter wildly, but even so, he tried to encourage his steed to go even faster….

Then, suddenly, one successful jump earned no cheer from Malon. A quick glance at her confirmed why: she was looking with obvious nervousness at a figure that was approaching rapidly from the direction of the buildings at the ranch's entrance.

Swiftly, he brought Epona to a halt next to the ranch girl and slipped out of the saddle.

The approaching man stormed through the open gate into the corral, and Link made note of his fancy clothing: mostly blue and red, with an elaborate white collar around his neck. He also had the biggest eyebrows and mustache that had likely ever been seen in this world. Both were a very dark brown, which made them stand out even more against his pale skin. And at the moment, this very frightful face was looking directly at Malon.

This must be Ingo.

"_There_ you are, you damn girl!" the fancy-clad man bellowed, his eyes narrowing until they were almost swallowed by his eyebrows. "I might have known—slacking off just like your worthless father. May I remind you that you are in _my_ employ. Entertain young lovers on your own time."

Link growled under his breath. He did not like this man already—insulting two such good-hearted people as this young lady and her father. His left hand twitched as if wanting to reach for his sword, and it took some effort to prevent that action by clasping both hands behind his back.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ingo," Malon said hollowly.

"You'd better be, or you'll no longer have a place at my ranch," snapped Ingo. "Now, get your pretty little face out of my sight. That stable won't clean itself."

Malon hung her head in apparent sadness. Quickly, Link stepped closer to her. "Malon, I'm…"

"It's not your fault, Link," she said softly, raising her head to look at him. "Please, don't look so worried. He's not cruel to me—it's the horses who suffer when he's angry. And he's right; I should be working now." She managed a weak smile. "I loved seeing you, though, and I hope you'll visit us again soon."

Turning, she shuffled out of the corral area, toward the distant stable. Ingo watched her every step of the way, one massive eyebrow raised as if he thought she was about to get into more mischief. Link watched her as well, frowning in sudden confusion, as some of Ingo's words echoed in his head. "'_Entertain young lovers,_'" he mused.

A silence fell after this, and somewhere above Link's head, Navi fervently wished she had hands so she could facepalm.

Finally, Malon disappeared around a corner of the building that held the stable, and the fancily-dressed ranch boss turned to look at Link. "Well… whom do we have here? I saw you riding as I was on my way over here, young man. It seems you are fond of horses, are you not?"

Link hesitated. Ingo's scowl had vanished, and his eyes had emerged from under his eyebrows, but those facts did not make him any less creepy.

"…Yes, I am," Link answered at last.

"I thought so. With the skill you displayed, you'd make a fine horseman at any ranch… but, sadly, I don't think that is to be. Tell me: that horse next to you. Is that Epona?"

"Yes," Link said again.

"A wild beast, but a noble one—fit for a king. I have raised that horse very carefully over the years, with the intention of giving her as a gift to the great Ganondorf."

_Ganondorf?!_

Link's sense of danger instantly went on high alert. What could a ranch owner, even a corrupt and mean-spirited one, want with—or from—the Evil King? But, on the other hand, if Ingo were in Ganondorf's camp, that would go a long way toward explaining the curse that hung over this place.

The young hero struggled to get his thoughts under control, to hide the sudden unease he was feeling, and chose his next words very meticulously—for it would never do for Ingo to find out that he was currently speaking to Ganondorf's biggest enemy. "Why… are you seeking to gain his favor?"

Ingo shrugged. "Self-interest—what else? He's our ruler now, and it's important to stay on his good side. Normally, I'd be angry with you for taking our great king's gift for a spin as you did… but today is your lucky day, kid."

_Lucky day._ Somehow, Link did not like the sound of that. He watched warily as Ingo pulled a folded-up piece of parchment out of a pocket in his fancy shirt.

"This right here," the ranch owner proclaimed, waving the parchment in the air, "is a letter from the great Ganondorf himself. Here. Read it."

Link stepped forward cautiously, took the proffered parchment, and unfolded it. The page was covered in an angular, harsh-looking hand.

_Ingo—_

_I have a new directive for you, and if you are truly a loyal servant of mine, you will comply. A young man dressed in green will come to your ranch and express interest in the horse called Epona, the one you had set aside as a gift for me. You are to…_

Blinking, Link looked up for a second and then put his eyes to the parchment once more, to make sure he had read that last sentence correctly. He had. His head spun, and he could do nothing but read the sentence aloud, as if it needed to be spoken to be confirmed as true.

"'_You are to give him that horse._'"

"That's right," Ingo stated, snatching the parchment out of Link's hand. "And so, that's that. Take her. She's all yours."

Completely baffled, Link actually swayed on his feet for a moment. Ganondorf… wanted him to have Epona? Unconsciously, his eyes went to the horse in question, which stood nearby, grazing peacefully.

A low chuckle reached his ears; he looked back to see Ingo so filled with glee that he was bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet. And the expression on his face at that moment—the crooked smile that was half-hidden by his mustache, the triumphant eyes that were sometimes obscured as his eyebrows bounced in time with the rest of him—was such that it could have scared even a Dodongo into submission.

* * *

**This was another fun chapter. For anyone who may be wondering, "Eps" is the nickname for Epona that I use whenever I play OoT/MM/TP. Figured I'd throw it in somewhere as a nice personal touch to the story :)**

**I have some things to do this summer, so this will be the last update for a while. The break may come at a good time, though, since I need to figure out how to handle the Forest Temple O_o I hope you all have a great summer, and see you on the flip side!**


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